Source: courant.com

By WENDY DONAHUE

Chicago Tribune

June 30, 2007

No one stuffs a baby’s pudgy piggies into stiletto pumps.

But the thought probably has crossed designers’ minds.

A baby-shoe boom has sent the classic white leather booties toddling into the bronzed sunset. Wiggling into their place are skater-boy Vans, trendy metallic Umi sandals and music-mogul gold sneakers from Gwen Stefani’s L.A.M.B. brand.

Even Italian icons such as Roberto Cavalli ($169 a pair) and Giorgio Armani are playing footsie - at sugar-daddy prices.

Can mini-Manolos be far behind?
(more…)

Source: The Wall Street Journal Online
By RAY A. SMITH
June 30, 2007; Page P7

Men browsing expensive shoe aisles this fall may notice a new line of luxurious oxfords with pre-aged leather and hand-stitched detailing for $150. The exotic new entrant: Hush Puppies, a brand best known for 1950s-era, brushed suede shoes that sell for $40.

As part of a general move upmarket, many midtier shoemakers are adding touches more commonly found in luxury brands. Bostonian, where top-of-the-line shoes previously cost $140, is debuting a new Luxe line, which is made in Italy with “antiqued leather” and costs $170. Johnston & Murphy’s new handmade Italian shoes start at $225 — more than double its usual starting price. At Rockport, which made its name selling comfortable casual shoes, 40% of its fall collection will be dress shoes, up from 20% this spring.

(more…)

If you’ve been taken aback by the hype around Wal-Mart stores and their products, think again. Here is someone who is not too pleased with their shoe selection. Click here for more.

Danish footwear firm Ecco is investing in a second Thai production plant, according to reports in local press.

Source: National Retail Federation

–Companies Lost 1.61% of Sales to Theft, Fraud–

San Diego, June 11, 2007 – As retailers continue to invest in new programs and technology to combat crime in their stores, dollar losses from theft and fraud have reached an all-time high. The preliminary results of the latest National Retail Security Survey were released today at the National Retail Federation’s Loss Prevention Conference and EXPO. Dr. Richard Hollinger, a professor at the University of Florida, will release the full survey in a session tomorrow at the conference. The survey found that retail shrinkage* averaged 1.61 percent of retail sales last year, nearly unchanged from 1.60 percent in 2005.
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Source: The Motley Fool - Fool.com

Rick Aristotle Munarriz
June 29, 2007

Sanity may finally be kicking in at Heelys (Nasdaq: HLYS). The maker of the popular rolling footwear with pop-out wheels won’t go through with its planned secondary offering.

Good call. It was dumb to announce a wave of defecting insiders — all of the shares offered in the secondary came from insiders cashing out — on the same day the company hosed down its near-term prospects.

(more…)

Vietnam's footwear exports to European Union (EU) in the first five months of 2007 have slumped in both value and volume due to the anti-dumping duties imposed on leather shoes.

(InternetRetailer.com)On average, only 66% of merchants and other organizations involved in processing payment card data encrypt that data for transmission over the Internet, compared to 100% among best-in-class organizations, research and advisory firm Aberdeen Group says in a new study, “Protecting Cardholder Data.” (more…)

"Beat Yesterday," a book, first published in 1888 by Walter Jessurun and used by F.W. Woolworth, Ben Franklin stores, J.C. -More-

(InternetRetailer.com)PayPal Inc. is offering secure key
technology through an electronic token that generates a unique security
code approximately every 30 seconds. Members can use this code, along
with their user name and password, to sign into both their eBay Inc.
and PayPal accounts, all in the name of preventing unauthorized access.

Called the PayPal Security Key, the
technology uses two-factor authentication to protect consumers and
reduce losses from online fraud such as phishing attacks. The key
carries a one-time fee of $5 for PayPal and eBay account holders in the
U.S. The technology soon also will be available in Germany and
Australia, PayPal says, with more countries to follow.
(more…)

The retail sector may be constantly evolving but the bottom line is that it will always be about getting customers to part with cash. by Helen Dickinson (UK) Link to story...

(TrendHunter.com) The credit card of the future is and RFID enabled device that links into your bank information so that you can display your financial situation and even get a financial forecast. It could also serve as your driver's license, student ID and passport. For security, no information is stored on the de…

"We have a lot of competitive advantages and behind them all is our relentless pursuit of performance and innovation in product" Nike Inc. said Tuesday its fiscal fourth-quarter net income jumped 32 percent because of strong gains in overseas markets, subsidiary business and future orders for the world's largest athletic shoe and ... via SanLuisObispo.com

DALLAS----Heelys, Inc. today announced that the withdrawal of its registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission for an underwritten secondary public offering of 4,500,000 shares of its common stock by certain of its stockholders that was filed on May 7, 2007 and last amended on June 25, 2007.

Practical Ecommerce’s Lauren Freedamn says take time now to consider these 8 merchandising tips for Holiday On Line shoppers. Time spent now can mean more $$ in retailers pockets. read complete story - Link to practical ecommerce

The California Senate Judiciary Committee has approved a measure that would make retailers more responsible for the costs paid by financial institutions after a data breach.

By Associated Press
Thursday, June 28, 2007 - Updated: 11:15 AM EST

WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court on Thursday abandoned a 96-year-old ban on manufacturers and retailers setting price floors for products. In a 5-4 decision, the court said that agreements on minimum prices are legal if they promote competition. The ruling means that accusations of minimum pricing pacts will be evaluated case by case.

… MORE

Source: Boston Herald / AP

Declines in its boot business, only partially offset by gains from its SmartWool acquisition and favourable currency conditions, helped send The Timberland Co to a nearly two-thirds drop in its first quarter profits.

By Marc L. Songini

June 22, 2007 (Computerworld) Faced with security breaches and personal data hemorrhages from retailers and a variety of educational and medical facilities, consumers are now becoming more skittish about the potential dangers of e-commerce.

That was one of the findings of a new survey on consumer privacy conducted by the Ponemon Institute, an Elk Creek, Mich.-based research and educational organization that focuses on privacy issues. Also participating in the survey, which drew responses from 789 consumers last month, was Vontu Inc., a San Francisco based security software maker…. MORE

Source: Computerworld

by Arnold Capitanelli III, Senior VP, The Friedman Group

Not that long ago in an issue of Stores magazine, there was a brief article called Bringing It All Together, which discussed how retailers need to ensure all their IT solutions, supply chain improvements and back room processes are designed with the customer experience in mind. This is great, and on many levels, one would think this should be a given, whether you’re talking about a big-box mega-chain or a small independent. However, many companies I’ve both worked for and consulted with, often forgot about who delivers the customer experience - that salesperson on the floor - when developing their systems and operational process solutions… MORE

Source: On The Floor Journal

by Victor Rosenberg, Senior Analyst, RMSA Retail Solutions

Accurate inventory forecasting and management are critical for all retail businesses. Your inventory is the most valuable asset on your balance sheet, and to maximize your profits, you need to ensure you have the right mix of products in the right quantities in the right places at the right times. Buy too little, and you risk missed sales and disappointed customers. Buy too much, and you tie up your resources in merchandise you can�t sell, inflating your expenses, cutting your profits and hurting your cash flow. Buy the wrong things, and you get the worst of both worlds…. MORE

Source: On The Floor Journal

For the first time in years there has been some negative news for the online retailing community to consider as a survey in the US suggests that the growth levels of shopping via the internet is heading for a slowdown this year.

Rising U.S. gas prices continue to influence how U.S. consumers spend, but not necessarily how much they spend, according to an ICSC survey of 1,000 households conducted last week. About 60 percent of respondents reported reducing the frequency of their shopping due to higher fuel expenditures, but not reducing their discretionary spending over the past month on such items as clothing, shoes, jewelry, consumer electronics, beauty services or on non-essential items.
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STRATHAM, N.H.----The Timberland Company today reported first-quarter net income of $9.3 million and diluted earnings per share of $0.15. First-quarter diluted EPS was $0.22 when adjusted to exclude restructuring costs related to previously announced decisions to license the Company's North America wholesale apparel business and globally restructure its organization around key consumer markets.

Take a quick look at the online shopping behaviors in Asia, Europe, and the US. Discover which countries are the most active in online shopping, and which products are the most popular.

It’s the age of the convertibles, and the idea of having something that changes its shape and appearance is quite an interesting one. Designer Sofie Collin has come out with one such interesting idea when she designed this convertible sneaker for Nike. The USP of Sofie’s design is the collapsible heel that caves in to give your sneakers a totally different appearance and purpose. It has got no laces, hence you don’t have to worry about the situation going awkward once you fold down the heels. Besides giving you the dual-design advantage, the footwear appears to be sturdy enough to give your feet the desired comfort. Source.